I am 63 and recently had myself tested for total and free testosterone. My total score was 394 ng/dl. I did not receive a “Free Testosterone” score per se, but instead received two other scores-- 52.4 nmol/L for “Sex Hormone Binding Globulin” and 26.1 for “Androgen, Free Index”. I have googled these results and have found a range of scales using different units of measurement and cannot make sense of my scores. I believe I am low, but I really have no idea how low (the scale my doctor’s lab uses seems nowhere to be found on the internet). I would be very grateful if someone could give me an idea of what these results mean for potential TRT.
Yes you are low. TT= T-bound to SHBG + T-Albumin+ fT. T-SHBG is not bio-available. fT is what should be considered when diagnosing for hypogonadism. Your fT is coming out to 5.91 ng/dl assuming albumin is 4.3.
Press your doctor to provide ranges.
Please read these links found here: About the T Replacement Category - #2 by KSman
- advice for new guys - provide more info about you
- things that damage your hormones
- protocol for injections
- finding a TRT doc
Your high SHBG is not good and may be implying that your estradiol [E2] is high.
Labs that you need:
TT
FT
E2
LH/FSH
CBC
hematocrit
fasting glucose
fasting cholesterol
Thanks for the info. What should my fT be? It seems I am low from what I can tell, but I am still confused by all the different measurements. Sorry to be dense, but if you could shed light on where my fT should be, I would be grateful.
The ranges are usually age adjusted. The youthful ranges are typically 9-30 pg/ml for fT. Would be lower for your age.
A higher SHBG inflates TT and does not give an accurate picture of Testosterone production. fT is the testosterone that is not bound by proteins and is free to bind to androgen receptors.
What to shoot for in terms of numbers is something which is very individual and requires patience. Just being in the normal range does not mean without symptoms or recovered. Follow the labs Ksman pointed to you and get them tested and post. You will get good advice here.
As @equalo212 said, you can estimate your Free Testosterone using an online calculator. There’s one on the ISSAM website, and another on the Nebido site.
There doesn’t seem to be an agreed upon cut-off for what level of free T constitutes hypogonadism, but the line is somewhere between 6.5 and 8 ng/dL, with most specialists using the lower end of that range.
At 5.9 ng/dL, you’re in the hypogonadal range. And there’s evidence to suggest that low free T causes more symptoms than low TT.
If you want to do a bit more reading here are a paper, and a review of best practices published by Men’s Health Boston giving expert guidelines on who should be offered TRT. Note that the contributors are all serious academics in endocrinology and urology.
I already have gotten great advice. Thanks very much. I will see about the test, but it looks as TRT is in my future.
Thank you. I will check out the resources you sent my way. I had no idea there was such a “place” where such helpful and informative folks hung out. Many thanks.